Did border agent’s Taser spark deadly fire?

Sheriff investigators pored over the burnt remains of a car that burst into flames on Old Highway 80 near Sunrise Highway on March 15 after it was disabled by spike strips deployed by Border Patrol agents during a pursuit.
— John Gibbins

Sheriff investigators pored over the burnt remains of a car that burst into flames on Old Highway 80 near Sunrise Highway on March 15 after it was disabled by spike strips deployed by Border Patrol agents during a pursuit.
— John Gibbins

EAST COUNTY  Three weeks after a college student’s rental car burst into flames during a Border Patrol pursuit, questions about what may have sparked the fatal fire remain unanswered.

Alex Martin, 24, of Texas was headed to San Diego to visit friends when he was killed March 15 in the Ford sedan.

Authorities said this week that the incident remains under investigation, although they have acknowledged that a Taser was fired just before the car ignited. The use of a Taser was first reported by 10News, media partner of U-T San Diego.

According to the Taser user manual, deploying a stun gun near flammable gases, fumes or materials could result in a fire or explosion.

The conditions surrounding Martin’s rental car at the time the Taser was deployed, including the presence of leaking gas or vapors, remain unclear. Officials have not released any further details about the Taser use, including if it struck Martin or the vehicle.

Keiko Arroyo, lead Taser instructor at Absolute Tactical Training in University Heights, said Tuesday that a high amount of gas or fumes would have to be in the area to ignite from a stun gun spark.

A Taser training video demonstrates a perfect storm scenario, where gasoline is poured directly over a dummy with two Taser probes already stuck in it. The dummy catches on fire when the Taser is fired.

Family friend Melissa Entsminger said Martin was a biology major at the University of Texas at Arlington. Because his older car is so unreliable, he rented a car at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport for the road trip to San Diego. He and his family had lived in the area when he was a child, and they moved to Texas when he was about 12.

Martin caught the attention of Border Patrol agents when someone reported a wrong-way driver on east Interstate 8 near Buckman Springs Road before midnight, authorities said. An agent spotted Martin’s car, which turned around and began driving in the correct direction.

Martin then exited at Old Highway 80 and did not pull over.

Agents set up spike strips at the nearby checkpoint, flattening the tires of the Ford when it crossed. The car came to a halt about half a mile down the road.

The agent walked toward the car, and a Taser “was deployed when the driver failed to comply with the agent’s commands to exit the vehicle,” according to the Border Patrol’s latest statement on the incident.

The car “exploded,” authorities said.

The agent was thrown backward from the blast and sustained minor burns and cuts.

Arroyo, who trains civilians, bodyguards and security guards, said another possibility is that sparks from driving on flattened tires may have ignited a fire under the car.

He said it would not be unusual for an officer to fire a Taser into a stopped car to subdue a person, but it should be avoided in a moving vehicle.

The Sheriff’s Department is handling the investigation, although all news media inquiries were being handled by the Border Patrol.